Divided
by ChaosInsanity
Summary: Nightkit isn't the same since the night THEY took her best friend's life. But what happens when a young tom exactly resembling her lost friend shows up? Full summary inside. First Warriors fanfic. Rated for darkness and violence
1. Chapter 1

**My first attempt at a Warriors fanfiction, so I hope it's good. This is the prologue. I decided to post this because the fanfic I'm working on is nearing it's conclusion (T-T) and I have nothing better to do, so... The chapters won't be long, but what I lack in quanity I hope to make up with in quality.**

**Disclimer: I don't own Warriors. That right is reserved to Erin Hunter - all 3 of them. I do, however, own Hawkkit and Nightkit, as they are my original characters. Steall and suffer -bares fangs-**

**Summary: Nightkit hasn't been the same ever since the night _they _invaded and took the life of her best friend. But what happens once day when an apprentice resembling Hawkkit - only older, fiercer, and stronger, with a cold brutality - shows up with his sister? What then? The rest of the Clan notes the resemblence as well, even though their leader, Darkstar, refuses to acknowledge it. And then what will happen when he is accused of murder and is chased out because of what could be a simple mistake and a sketchy past?**

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**Prologue**

Nightkit sat up, her soft eyes glowing in the darkness of the nursery. She flicked an ear as a pair of pale emerald eyes appeared on the other side of the dim den. Nightkit cautiously crept form her nest and scampered over to meet the other kit. A dark tabby tom kit leapt light out of the nest and landed with a muffled thump on all fours.

"Hawkkit!" Nightkit purred. "Can't sleep again?" she guessed, rubbing her cheek against her friend's.

"I keep getting a feeling that something's wrong," he replied, shifting his gaze around the nursery.

"You say that every time I ask!" Nightkit mewled loudly. Lowering her voice, she hissed, "I'm getting tired of that answer. Nothing's going to happen, Hawkkit."

"You don't know that for sure," Hawkkit replied gruffly.

"You don't know for sure something _will _happen," Nightkit replied.

Hawkkit snorted. "Of course you don't believe me," he growled. "No one ever does." Flattening his ears the tabby whirled and stalked off towards the far dark corner of the nursery.

Sighing, Nightkit padded after him at a slower pace. She should have worded her reply much more carefully. Hawkkit wasn't fully trusted of by the Clan because he'd been a rogue kit. His mother was found dead near a foxtrap around the border between her Clan and ThunderClan. He still hadn't gained her Clan's trust.

As she came up behind him she heard a loud yowl from outside the nursery and then a dark tabby streaked into the nursery. "Invaders!" he howled. "Quick! Quick! Get out!"

"I-Invaders?" one queen echoed.

"Yes! Rogue cats!"

Instantly the queens were on their paws, hastily gathering up their kits. Nightkit felt her mother's jaws close around her scruff and pull her back. Nightkit's brother, Swiftkit, was huddled between their mother's forepaws. Nightkit's friends' mother herded them, Rainkit and Spottedkit, towards the entrance of the nursery, and Nightkit's mother did the same.

Nightkit struggled away and twisted around to look at Hawkkit, who was trying to fight his way out. But the queens, frantic for their kits' safety, ignored the small kit and practically trampled him.

"He'll be fine!" Nightkit's mother snapped. "Someone will get him."

"He's not fine!" Nightkit protested. "Look at him! He can't get out! And no one will help him—no one cares about him!"

"That's not my problem. He's not my kit but you are. Now _come on!_"

Nightkit's mother clamped her jaws around her middle and hefted her into the air. Prodding and urging Swiftkit forward with her forepaws, their mother quickly got them out of the nursery.

Outside was madness. Warriors and apprentices were tackling and clawing at the band of attackers. The rogues were slim, not thin. They seemed too well-fed to be rogues, but not so much that they were kittypets. They were strong too. One rogue unsheathed long claws and torn open a massive, ragged wound in a stone-colored warrior's flank. The warrior cried out in pain and retreated.

A few other apprentices were guiding the queens and elders to the hidden back entrance of the camp while warrior distracted and drove away the invaders that tried to attack.

Nightkit searched for Hawkkit's familiar green eyes and finally saw them flashing towards her. Nightkit squirmed and her mother placed her at her paws. Nightkit bounced anxiously on her paws. Hawkkit had nearly reached them. Just a little more—

"Hawkkit!"

Nightkit saw a large rogue cat lunge suddenly from the shadows, jaws parted in a wide snarl. The rogue slashed at Hawkkit with long claws and the tabby was thrown to the side.

"Hawkkit!" Nightpaw shrieked.

Her mother twisted her head around, eyes wide and fur bristling in alarm. She swept her tail around her two kits and tried to get them going. Swiftkit struggled to pull ahead, but Nightkit fought to get back to Hawkkit. She felt her mother's paw grab at her and tug her back.

She screeched her friend's name again, but her mother finally had a firm grip on her and she felt herself being yanked away.

The rogue hissed as Hawkkit staggered to his paws, and tore its claws across his face, leaving behind a long claw mark over on eye. Hawkkit reared back, yowling in pain as he placed his forepaws to his face. Nightkit once again struggled against her mother's strong grip, but couldn't get free. She finally gave up and went limp as the rogue loomed over Hawkkit, fangs bore.

Hawkkit bristled, but glared up defiantly at the rogue.

Nightkit couldn't help but admire his courage.

Hawkkit was staring death in the face but he wouldn't give up.

Nightkit's mother spun er around as the rogue leaped at Hawkkit's throat.

She heard his sharp hiss.

Heard the spatter of blood.

Scented the coppery tang.

But all she saw was darkness as she squeezed her eyes shut, allowing her mother to guide her to safety with gentle nudges.

--

When the last of the invaders had been driven out the ground of their camp was soaked with blood. Dead and wounded cats were littered throughout the camp. Nightkit slunk back into camp, pressed low against the ground. Her ears were flat and her fur spiked up. _So this must be the disaster Hawkkit sensed coming, eh? …Hawkkit! Where is he?!_

Nightkit shot up, eyes wide and ears cocked. She glanced around at all the wounded and limp cats but they were all too big to be Hawkkit! And none of them had that incredibly dark tabby pelt of his! No…the rogues…they didn't take his body…did they?! They wouldn't! Why would they want his body?! Why?!

Nightkit streaked away, ignoring her mother's cries and yowled, "Hawkkit! Hawkkit! Where are you?! Hawkkit!"

She couldn't find him. But he had to be here! His body, at least—he deserved a proper burial!

"Hawkkit…!" she wailed meekly, finally collapsing onto the ground.

She felt her father's tail curl around her, and heard her mother's soothing voice in her ear.

She was numb to it all, though.

Why Hawkkit? Why him?

_Why?_

If only someone had stopped to help him…then this never would have happened! He was only a kit! He didn't deserve this! He didn't deserve it…he didn't…he didn't…

_He didn't…_

_Why did…_

_Why him…_

_It wasn't fair…he was only a kit…_

_Just…just a kit…_

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**Eh, odd. I always have odd endings. I hoped you liked it. Remember, this is my first Warriors fanfic so humor me and leave a polite reveiw by clicking the little reveiw button, mkay?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Ah, another chapter. Sorry it's short, but I said the chapters would be in the prologue. By the sounds of the 5 reviewers that were kind enough to push the review button they would like the next chapter so here it is. If it's lame, sorry, but I have a bad time with the 1st few chappies, but it will get better. This and the next two or three chapters are just introducing main characters and their personalities and such and setting the plot.**

**Rrgh, stupid fanfiction won't let me post this chapter with a name T-T I don't know how to get that to work so...this is CHAPTER 1; last chapter was the PROLOGUE. Just to make it Clear, and I will now post the name of each chapter before the story starts**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors. That honor is Erin Hunter's and Erin Hunter's alone. T-T**

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**Chapter 1: Scented**

Nightpaw shifted uneasily as she felt a paw prod at her side. A voice hissed in her ear, "Wake up!" Nightpaw growled and turned away, tightly curling her tail over her nose. She tried to ignore the sharp prods at her shoulder, but soon enough another set of forepaws began to swat at her ears. Finally she sprang up in her nest of moss, hissing, back arched and fur on end. Before her stood her two best friends, sister Rainpaw and Spottedpaw. Rainpaw burst out laughing and raced out of the apprentice den.

Muttering darkly under her breath, Nightpaw shook scraps of fur from her coat and stalked out of the den, mostly ignoring Spottedpaw's quick apologies. "…Redtalon asked us to wake you."

Nightpaw flicked an ear at her mentor's name. "Redtalon should've woken me himself."

"He couldn't," Spottedpaw told her. "Frostwind sent him and a few other warriors for the border patrol. They're heading over to the ThunderClan border."

"Frostwind is too bossy."

"Well that's a nice thing to say about your deputy."

Nightpaw and Spottedpaw whirled. Nightpaw growled as her brother sauntered up to them. Swiftpaw was a dark grayish blue tom with large, intelligent dark eyes. And he was small, about half of Nightpaw's size. He'd been born after her and had almost died. This entitled him to special treatment—at least to their mother. Their father, being the leader of the Clan, was extremely strict and hardly ever cut them any slack. Their father wasn't all that pleased that his first son had chosen the path of a medicine cat either.

"Well, it's true," Nightpaw snorted.

"What's wrong with you today, Nightpaw?" Rainpaw came up to them, carrying a squirrel in her jaws. Her sharp blue eyes narrowed. "You're acting different today."

Nightpaw sighed and her shoulder sagged. "Redtalon was a little too hard on me last night. I kept getting my night stalking pose wrong, and he'd keep telling me to track some more prey and try again and again until my muscles hurt so much they went numb. He wouldn't even let me rest when one of my claws ripped and started bleeding. I think he hates me."

"Why would you say that?" Spottedpaw asked, titling her head to the side.

Nightpaw shrugged. "It's just a feeling I get."

"Hey, you know what?" Three pairs of eyes turned slowly towards Swiftpaw, whose eyes began shine brightly. "Whenever I'm sent to check on the elders, they're usually telling Driftleaf's kits a story."

"And this has to do with my problem how…?"

"Get this: when our parents and your mentor were young warriors, Redtalon was in love with mom!"

"Are you serious?" Rainpaw demanded, her squirrel forgotten and she unsheathed her front claws and dug them into the ground.

Scrambling away from the gray-blue she-cat's claws, Swiftpaw nodded. "Rosedust is always reminiscing about the 'good old days.' Once she was babbling on about all the senior warriors and their crushes and such, and she slipped up and started telling us that Redtalon and our father got into a big fight during a hunting patrol over mom. After realizing what she'd said, Rosedust seemed startled and excused herself quickly, telling us to just forget that last part."

"Oh great, my father and mentor were rivals in love and dad won." Nightpaw covered her deep blue eyes with her paws. "No wonder Redtalon hates me."

Swiftpaw rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted as his mentor, the medicine cat Shadowwhisper, called loudly, "Swiftpaw! Come, we're going to collect catmint."

Swiftpaw's ears twitched up and he yowled, "I'm coming!" Turning back to Nightpaw and the others, he told them quickly, "I'll talk to you guys later." And then he sped off towards the camp entrance before they others could say a single word.

--

Nightpaw was a sleek short-furred black she-cat. Her smooth fur was dark shade of black, similar to the night sky when the moon was visible. She had a dash of brown fur on her chest and a spot of brown over each eye. Her ears and tail were tipped in brown, and her underbelly melted from black to a dark shade of brown. Her sharp eyes were a ghostly glowing blue. Nightpaw was usually very energetic and friendly, but lately, her training sessions with Redtalon were stressing her out.

Spottedpaw and Rainpaw were both sisters. Their pelts were the same shade of blue-gray, but that was where the similarities ended. Spottedpaw's pelt was speckled with small white dots, and her chest, forepaws, and face were white, whereas Rainpaw was fleck with spots of gray-blue darker than her misty pale pelt. Rainpaw's dark blue eyes always had a fierce, determined fire burning within them, while Spottedpaw's ice-blue eyes showed off her calm, somewhat timid attitude.

Nightpaw strained her already-weary muscles to catch up with Rainpaw. "Hey…," she puffed. "Wait…up!"

Spottedpaw slowed her pace and fell into step beside Nightpaw, but Rainpaw merely called over her shoulder, "We've waited long enough! Redtalon will flay me if we get there any later!" and sped up.

"Ugh…that makes me feel so much better," Nightpaw hissed.

"Relax," Spottedpaw told her, pulling ahead slightly. "Besides, you can't blame her. Not really. She never did get along with him."

"Redtalon is your father's brother!"

"Yes," Spottedpaw confirmed, "but they didn't get along either, did they?"

"I guess not."

Rainpaw's pace steadily slowed as they neared the border until she was practically dragging her feet. Trotting along at Nightpaw's other side, she flattened her ears. "I'm not looking forward to facing Redtalon," she muttered under her breath.

Spottedpaw snorted. "Do you think your mentor will really let him tell you off?"

"Since when did Redtalon ever listen?"

Spottedpaw fell silent.

When the border between ShadowClan and ThunderClan came into view, Nightpaw saw Redtalon pacing back and forth angrily, his dark ginger fur spiked up. Rainpaw's and Spottedpaw's mentors, Blackwind and Sandfeather, were sitting next to each other at the edge of the border. Their eyes followed Redtalon's movements while their forepaws twitched in agitation.

Blackwind was a long furred black tom with striking amber eyes. He had two long, identical white dashes along his shoulder and a white crest on his chest. His long black tail flowed out and the dark colors lightened from black, to gray, to white. Sandfeather was a slim, sand colored she-cat with a talent for fighting. Her tail was long and thin, and ended in a white tip. Redtalon was a large, broad-shouldered tom with flaming amber eyes and a deep, red pelt.

Nightpaw perked up when she saw her friends' mentors' agitated attitudes. Bounding ahead of her friends and raced right u to the patrol. In her haste she almost ran right over the border, but Blackwind shot out a long foreleg and jolted her to a stop. Sandfeather gently tugged her away from the border and Nightpaw murmured a quick, "Sorry—thanks."

Redtalon, however, hissed venomously at her. "Foolish kit!" he spat. "You could've run right over the border and left your scent all over the ThunderClan side of the border!"

"It was an innocent mistake, Redtalon," Sandfeather growled, cutting off Nightpaw's protests.

Redtalon gave them a dark look and spat, "Why I was stuck with such a needy kit…" He trailed off into dark muttering.

"So, uh, what's wrong?" Rainpaw intruded as she and Spottedpaw came nearer.

"An intruder, that's what," snapped Redtalon. "They left a faint scent…and it's fresh, too."

"ThunderClan?" inquired Spottedpaw. "Did a ThunderClan cat cross the border?"

"No," Blackwind replied. "It's the scent of a rogue for sure."

"So what are we gonna do about it?" Rainpaw demanded.

"Calm down, young one." Blackwind flicked his apprentice's ear. "Sometimes there isn't anything we **can** do."

"For now we'll just have to strengthen our border," Sandfeather added.

--

Nightpaw's forepaw brushed across a bracken frond, causing it to rustle. The prey she stalked, a squirrel, perked up at the noise and streaked off, its eyes wide. Nightpaw's own eyes widened slightly and her mouth opened a little at her mistake. She recovered quickly though, and kicked off with her hind legs, propelling herself out of the shadows and into the open. Despite her numbing muscles and aching paws she put on a fresh burst of speed and easily caught up to the squirrel. With another sharp kick she lurched forward and slammed her forepaws down over the squirrel's tail. Dragging it closer to her, she bit its throat and squeezed until she felt the coppery tang of blood in her mouth. After a moment of futile struggling, the squirrel went limp.

Nightpaw straightened up, the rodent dangling from her jaws. She glanced over her shoulder and sighed as Spottedpaw and Sandfeather bounded towards her, complimenting her catch. Nightpaw forced a smile and then scanned the trees for Redtalon. After a few tense moments the ginger tom stalked form the shadows, his eyes slitting, and a frog hanging from his jaws.

Redtalon gave her cold look as he momentarily placed the frog at his paws. "You'll have to be quieter than that."

"But I caught it, didn't I?" Nightpaw retorted.

"Yes, by pure dumb luck."

"It wasn't luck!" Nightpaw yowled.

"You're hunter's crouch needs improvement too."

"Why are you always correcting me instead of encouraging me?!"

Redtalon's lip curled. "You don't expect praise for every little mistake, do you?"

"Why do you hate me?!" Nightpaw demanded. She suddenly froze. She hadn't meant to say that.

Redtalon's eyes burned. "That's it!" he hissed at her, his fur bristling dangerously. "I've had enough of you!"

There was a slight rustle, and Rainpaw and Blackwind joined them. "We heard yelling," Blackwind panted, dropping a vole at his paws. He noticed the tense air between Redtalon and Nightpaw, and sensed the anxiousness in Sandfeather and Spottedpaw. "What's wrong?"

Sandfeather slid up next to him and whispered into his ear, "I'll tell you later."

Blackwind nodded.

Redtalon snarled at Nightpaw. "Come with me—we're going back to camp."

Nightpaw swallowed nervously, and, picking up her prey, hesitantly followed the furious ginger tom.

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**Gah, Nightpaw's in trouble. She sure mouthed off XD**

**Seriously tho, Redtalon needs to lighten up. I didn't intentionally want to make him like that but it sorta happened. I guess it started with Nightpaw's bad day. -sigh- Anyway, I'm thinking about 5 reviews before we see Nightpaw's punishment. The next chapter won't be very exciting, but will help set the pace, as will chapter 3. It all picks up a little in chapter 4.**

**R&R plz**


	3. Chapter 3

**Bleh, I got 4 reviews, not the 5 I wanted (T-T) but I got bored of waiting and you got lucky**

**Urk, shortness...I hate short chapter. This isn't all that an exciting chapter, but...meh, not everything is exciting, eh? Anywayz, we see more of Redtalon's cold side. Ah...he really is mean, huh? Maybe he's a decendant of Rowanclaw XD**

**No no no, Redtalon is much more evil than that ginger cat - u just won't see it til later...**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN WARRIORS! How many !#& times must I say it?**

**Chapter 2: Punishment**

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Darkstar's pale yellow eyes flashed in the dimness of his den. As Redtalon and Nightpaw drew closer, the large dark-furred tomcat rose up from his nest and sat on his haunches. Darkstar had long dark fur, somewhere in between an extremely dark shade of brown and black. Darkstar's thick tail curled over his paws.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit, Redtalon?" Nightpaw saw her father's eyes flash when he uttered her mentor's name, and heard the venom lacing his words.

Redtalon's lip curled again as he flicked his tail at Nightpaw. "Let her tell you."

Darkstar turned his luminous pale gaze towards Nightpaw. "Nightpaw…?"

Hesitantly, Nightpaw recounted what had happened between her and Redtalon. Scuffing the ground with her forepaw, she flattened her ears and tried to look as small as possible, which wasn't too hard, considering the size of the two cats before her. Darkstar cast Redtalon a cold sideways glare, but spoke directly to Nightpaw. "Well, you should know better, Nightpaw. You will be punished. You must take care of the elders for a half-moon, and must feed them before feeding yourself. Change their bedding and search their pelts for ticks. The other apprentices will be taken off this duty during your punishment." Darkstar hesitated, and then added, "And you will not attend the Gathering."

Nightpaw's eyes widened and her mouth hung open. She stammered, trying to protest, but finally sighed and gave in. "Yes, Darkstar."

"Good, go on. Get started on the elders."

--

Scowling, Nightpaw searched through Rosedust's pale gray fur for ticks, rubbing in the mouse bile when she caught the occasional insect. Rosedust was mumbling to herself, once again reminiscing about the day when she was lean and strong, which Nightpaw found hard to imagine. She didn't say so, however, and kept her thoughts—mostly about tearing Redtalon to shreds—to herself.

Then, as if it were bad enough, Driftleaf's two kits, Ivykit and Howlingkit, came scampering into the elder's den. The two kits chased each other around Mothheart's nest until the dark tabby she-cat opened an amber eye and rasped, "Well, well, Ivykit and Howlingkit, what is it today?"

"Tell us a story!" the kits squeaked in unison.

Mothheart sat up in her nest. Her eyes glittered as a sly smile came to her lips. "Perhaps…would you like hear Tigerstar's tale?"

Howlingkit skid to a stop, causing his sister to ram into his small tabby frame. Ivykit, a much lighter brown tabby, hissed in annoyance and spat, "Howlingkit! What's the big idea!?"

"T-Tigerstar…?" Howlingkit echoed. "You mean…the evil cat that used to lead ShadowClan?"

"That's the one," Mothheart replied, her grin widening.

Howlingkit swallowed.

Ivykit shoved his roughly. "Don't be such a coward!" she chided, and then to Mothheart added, "Yes, please tell us!"

Mothheart chuckled and began her story.

Nightpaw rolled her eyes. Tigerstar's tale wasn't all that great. She was disappointed when she'd heard it. How could such a strong cat be felled by a single slash? Grunting, she viciously rubbed some mouse bile onto Rosedust's back, not even realizing how strong her stroke were until Rosedust yowled in alarm and cried, "Not so hard!"

"Sorry," she muttered. She rubbed some more mouse bile over several ticks and then started over towards Mothheart, who paused and looked at her.

"No thanks," the reddish-brown mottled cat meowed firmly. "Don't interrupt a story. You check my pelt tomorrow. For now…you can put that bile away. Grayclaw is asleep and Sparkwing is out for a walk."

"So am I finished? Can I go?" Nightpaw asked hopefully.

"Finished, yes; go, no." Mothheart shook her head. "Now you can go fetch some fresh moss from the forest." As Nightpaw moaned and turned away, holding the wooden stick carrying the bile-soaked moss, the elder added, "And make sure the moss is dry!"

--

Nightpaw's fur bristled. She slashed at a frond of bracken and stalked off into the trees, her hackles raised. She heard a rustle as a mouse shot across her path. She hissed, startling the rodent. She swiped her claws at the mouse and sent it scurrying into the shadows. Snorting, the black she-cat flicked her tail and padded through the woods in ShadowClan territory.

She finally reached the lake and scanned the trees near the lakeshore. Narrowing her eyes, she finally found a tree with moss clinging to the tangled mass of roots twisted in the damp earth.

Nightpaw reared onto her haunches and sank her claws into the soft, springy moss. She tore away a large clump and tossed it to the ground, away from the lapping water. Again and again she tore free large clumps of the green vegetation and piled it a few tail length's from the water's edge.

When she had enough, she took the massive amounts of moss in her jaws and vigorously shook her head, sending small droplets of water into the air. When at last the moss was dry and fresh, she set off back to camp.

--

That night a full moon hung high and clear in the night sky. Nightpaw watched sullenly with flattened ears as her friends and brother padded outside into the camp with their mentors, excitedly chattering away as they eagerly awaited the Gathering. They didn't even glance at her.

Nightpaw rose stiffly to her paws and slunk away, her eyes smoldering with fury. She even saw Redtalon among the group of cats attending the Gathering. As if feeling her enraged gaze on him, Redtalon twisted his head around and sneered at her, his eyes thin slits. Then he faced the front again and curled his tail around his forepaws.

With an angry hiss, Nightpaw stormed off towards the fresh-kill pile.

As she snatched up a thin squirrel, he father's voice filled her ears. "You already fed the elders, right?"

"I fed them before you called for the Gathering," Nightpaw replied, her voice dripping with bitterness.

"Good." Darkstar straightened up and fixed his eyes on Gladeshadow, Nightpaw's mother. "The Gathering starts soon and I have to get going." He flicked Nightpaw's ear with his tail. "Don't worry. You'll get to attend next time."

"Who's worried?" Nightpaw muttered as Darkstar trotted off.

--

Soon after Darkstar and the Clan left, Nightpaw fell limp onto the ground. She rolled onto her back, bored. Another one of the several apprentices left behind, Silverpaw, came up to her, his pale amber-orange eyes glowing.

Silverpaw was a light silver tabby tom with gray markings. He was about a moon older than Nightpaw and her friends and had a crush on Nightpaw—and everybody knew it. In fact, it seemed as if Silverpaw went out of his way to show everybody just how much he liked Nightpaw. In all honestly, Nightpaw found him highly annoying and didn't return the feelings. She didn't even like him as a friend.

"Hi Nightpaw, how are you?"

"Fine, Silverpaw."

"Are you okay? I heard about what happened with Redtalon."

"Who hasn't by now?"

Missing the sarcasm in her voice, Silverpaw went on, "But anyway, isn't it lucky that at least the two of us were left behind?"

"Is that a trick question?"

"I'm just saying we're lucky to be stuck together."

"Depends on your definition of luck."

Silverpaw opened his mouth to say something, but Nightpaw beat him to it. "I have to go."

"Where?"

"Hunting."

"I'll come too!"

"No. I'd rather go alone."

"But—"

"I mean it, Silverpaw!" Nightpaw hissed, her hackles rising.

Silverpaw bristled and backed away, mumbling something.

Rolling her eyes, Nightpaw padded towards the camp entrance, telling the guard quickly, "I'm going hunting."

"Come back soon," the guard growled. Nightpaw nodded and at long last slid into the forest.

* * *

**Tch, boring, I know. It will hopefully pick up a little in the next chapter.**

**Newayz, u know the drill: 5 reviews for an update.**

**R&R plz**

**P.S. Do me a favor. Go onto my profile and VOTE ON MY # POLL! I only got one vote T-T None of the choices are for Warriors, but if you vote I will get updates sooner, longer chaps (hopefully), and I will give you...a sequel!! Yes, it's early to think of a sequel, BUT! I have the plot figured out AND the plot for a sequal thought out! How cool is that?! So plz vote?**


	4. Chapter 4

**New chapter. You know the drill. I own nothing. I put up the next chapter cuz I only got 1 review and got tired of waiting. So bleh. Things pick up a little here.**

Nightpaw inhaled deeply, tasting the air and drawing in the scents around her. She suddenly caught the scent of mouse, and she slipped into a hunter's crouch. She slit her eyes and glided forward a few paces. So intent on catching the mouse, Nightpaw didn't notice a twig half hidden by a clump of dead grass.

Her paw fell over the stick and she placed the slightest pressure on it before realizing her mistake. She recoiled, but it was too late. A sharp snap alerted the mouse and it shot off through the forest.

With a frustrated hiss Nightpaw charged forward, following the mouse's scent trail, dodging around trees and the occasional undergrowth. She saw its long tail disappear beneath a small bush with a quick flick. Nightpaw threw herself into the bush, clawing at the roots. Her claw snagged at some fur and a shrill squeak filled her ears.

More determined than ever she pushed her way out of the bush and searched for the mouse. The air was tinted with the slight tang of blood, and a small trail of blood droplets led her deeper into ShadowClan territory. Nightpaw flexed her claws and followed the track of blood, her eyes burning. She wouldn't give Redtalon another reason to yell at her and get her in trouble—she couldn't!

Just up ahead she heard a rustle and another sharp squeak.

In an instant she pelted towards the noise and forced herself through the thick, unusual plantation in this section of the forest. The scent of blood was stronger now. She inhaled deeply, drawing the scent over her scent glands and turned her head in the direction of a large tree she couldn't identify. She crouched down low and slunk towards it. When she reached its base she hooked her claws into the soft rots and peered over it.

The mouse lay limply in a small pool of blood.

Besides the small nick in its back caused by Nightpaw's claw, the only other mark on its small frame was a set of teeth marks around its throat. Coming closer, Nightpaw was able to tell that the bite to the throat had been quick and clean.

Nightpaw scented the air around the mouse.

There was a faint trace of cat around, but it was faded and light. But even still Nightpaw could tell it was fresh. A little confused, she tasted the air yet again and could sense a familiar scent. She sat beside the mouse and placed at paw on it, unsheathing her claws into its soft flesh. Nightpaw tried to remember where she'd smelled it before, but she just couldn't place it. It wasn't a Clan scent, so it had to be rogues.

With a sigh, she gave up and dragged the mouse to the side, tucking it against a tree root. Whether or not she'd been chasing it, she hadn't killed it. And whether the killer had left or not, she couldn't take it. She scraped some earth over its limp form and turned back in the direction of camp, intent on catching _something _before returning.

A low hiss made her freeze.

A pair of slit-pupil yellow eyes leered at her. Nightpaw's fur spiked up in alarm and her ears went flat. A long, thin snake slithered into view. Nightpaw took a step to the side and tried to pad around it, but the snake's jaws parted in a furious hiss and it shot its head forward. Nightpaw was only just able to spring back.

The snake inched closer, its mouth stretched wide. Nightpaw stood frozen in terror. She'd never seen a snake before, but she'd heard of them. One of the elder's had once told her and Swiftpaw a story of an apprentice who'd foolishly tried to kill a snake and had died from a poisonous bite. Nightpaw had been told that not all snakes were deadly or poisonous, and she prayed to StarClan this was one of those snakes.

As the snake began to tense, Nightpaw heard a low voice hiss from above her, "Don't move."

Nightpaw snapped her head up and the snake twitched. A pair of eyes flashed from the tree looming above her, and Nightpaw could faintly see a cat's outline clinging to the tree trunk, shrouded by the thick shadows.

The snake hissed again, flexing its jaws, and then lunged.

The cat kicked its hind legs hard and sprang from the tree trunk, forepaws outstretched. The cat landed on the snake just as it flashed out, ready to deliver a strong bite. The cat's claws sunk deeply into the snake's flesh just below its throat. The snake's tail lashed wildly and the cat pinned it down with one hind leg. The snake's head jerked wildly, but the cat quickly wrapped its jaws around its throat and bit down hard. Almost immediately the snake went limp.

With the long creature still in its jaws, the cat cast luminous pale green eyes on her, and Nightpaw shivered. The cat tossed the snake onto the ground between them. Swallowing, Nightpaw stammered, "Thanks for that."

The cat grunted in reply.

Nightpaw tried to make out the tom's features.

Despite the full moon, the trees were thick in this part of ShadowClan and blocked out the rays of moonlight. With what little light she _did _have she could note the cat had an extremely dark pelt, with a lighter colored chest. She couldn't make out any markings, though.

"I'm Nightpaw, from ShadowClan," Nightpaw began cautiously.

"Talon," the tom muttered gruffly.

Now she tensed up, her fur spiking up, but this time in aggression rather than fear. "Okay, _Talon, _you have to leave. This is ShadowClan territory." Taking a threatening step towards him, she bared her fangs and growled. "And we don't take too kindly to intruders."

"Right, how scary." Talon's voice dripped with sarcasm.

Nightpaw narrowed her eyes. The tom was only a bit older than her, maybe by a moon. She took a deep breath, ready to lash out a reply, when she drew in his scent. Startled she backed up. This was the same scent Redtalon, Sandfeather, and Blackwind had found near the border.

"What?"

"You're the same rogue we scented near the border!"

"Took you this long, eh?"

"I'm getting annoyed here."

"I could care less."

"You don't want to fight me."

"You have that backwards."

With a snarl Nightpaw lunged at the rogue Talon. With surprising speed and ease for a tom his size, Talon ducked down low and dodged her flashing claws. He slid beneath her stomach as she landed, fell onto his side sunk his claws into her underbelly while knocking her hind paws out form under her with his own. Nightpaw yelped and Talon flipped her beneath him before she hot the ground.

He smirked as he easily pinned her to the forest floor. Nightpaw struggled beneath his grip, but eventually gave up and went limp.

"Well, aren't you quite the fighter?" she sneered.

"Yes, I am. Thank you for acknowledging that."

Nightpaw rolled her eyes.

Talon then sheathed his claws, pulling hem from Nightpaw's flesh. She winced at the throb of pain, but it quickly faded. She sat back on her haunches and examined the wound. To her surprise there was little to no blood—and those small claw marks were the only wounds inflicted on her.

"Wha…?" Nightpaw looked up at Talon. "How did you…?"

"I've trained myself to either cause few wounds with little blood loss or extremely painful fatal wounds. I pride myself on being able to control how much pain I inflict on my prey or enemies."

"Wow."

"Well, I have to get going."

"What? Where?"

"I have to hunt. My sister is ill. While traveling here from the Twolegplace far from here, she got into a nasty fight with a rat. Her wounds weren't too bad and are mostly healed, she's just weak."

"Oh." Nightpaw felt a slight pan of guilt, but forced it away. "Yes, but this is still ShadowClan territory. I can't let you stay here!"

"And what exactly will this ShadowClan do to stop me?" Talon replied, padding away. "What _can _you do?"

--

Nightpaw returned to camp carrying two frogs and a mouse. The guard barely reacted when she returned. Dropping the prey on the fresh-kill pile, she began pacing restlessly. The rest of the Clan had not returned from the Gathering—she assumed they were on their way back. With a sigh she head back for the camp entrance and once again entered the forest.

Camp was so _boring!_

She had to get out again…just for a little while.

She soon found herself making her way deeper into the forest, back towards where she'd met that cat, Talon. Maybe he was still around…

She broke into a run, just wanting to get away for a while… a twig snapped behind her. She whirled, bristling, fangs flashing. The shadows stretched long all around her. Her heart pounding, Nightpaw plunged deeper still into the darkness. Another snap behind her, a small rustle, and then…she exploded out into an area in the territory where the trees were less dense. She tripped, stumbling over her paws and fell heavily onto the cold ground.

She heard a few surprised gasps, and looked up. She had run right into the Clan returning from the Gathering. Sitting up straight, wincing, she looked up at her father, Darkstar.

Darkstar tilted his head to one side. "What is it, Nightpaw? What's wrong?"

"I…I…"

"You looked as if you had Tigerstar on your tail," her mother remarked.

"No…but something _was _following me."

Redtalon came running up to Darkstar then. His tone serious, Redtalon said, "Intruders have been scented again." Sandfeather and a younger warrior, Sharddust, padded up behind the ginger tom.

"We scented them a little ways back," Sharddust hissed.

"The same scent we found near the border," Sandfeather added.

_Oh no! _Nightpaw thought. _Talon's in danger!_

"We found a snake and mouse, both killed by a cat's bite to the throat," Redtalon continued in a growl. "Whoever this intruder is—or are—it's been stealing our prey. Why it didn't take the mouse and snake is beyond me. Maybe something scared them off. I don't know."

Darkstar slit his eyes, and then lashed his tail at Frostwind. The blindingly white-furred she-cat with frosty blue eyes came padding up to them. "Take the rest of the Clan back to camp," Darkstar ordered. Frostwind nodded and then began to call to the Clan. Darkstar quickly motioned to Sandfeather and Blackwind. Turning back to Redtalon, he growled, "Now take us to where you scented them."

Redtalon nodded and began to lead them into the trees.

Nightpaw shifted uneasily. A part of her wanted to go and warn Talon, but another part of her knew that would be like betraying her Clan. Claws of worry and indecision wracked at her mind. Finally she shot to her paws and pelted after her father and his patrol.

Blackwind whipped around at the sound of her approaching paw steps and hissed warningly, baring his fangs and narrowing his eyes. Nightpaw skid to a stop and stumbled. She fell down yet again at her Redtalon's paws, and the tom's fierce amber eyes burned into her.

"Nightpaw!" Darkstar hissed. "What are you doing?"

"I want to help!" she lied quickly. She really did—she just didn't know _who _she wanted to help.

"This is too dangerous for you," Redtalon snapped. "Go back to camp."

"I want to help!"

"No!" Darkstar put his muzzle up to hers. "You'll do as I say and you'll do it now: go back to camp."

Nightpaw opened her mouth to object, but sighed and turned away with ears flattened, casting one last spiteful look at Redtalon, who smirked triumphantly.

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**Quaaa! wtf is a qua? Newayz, meanie Redtalon is being horrid again. Holy crap did I just say horrid? O.o**

**Anyway, cliffie. What will happen next? _6 _reviews will tell you! So go on, press the little button, and tell your friends to find out **


	5. Chapter 5

**Oohh...I feel horrible for not updating in SO long! But it wasn't my fault!! Blame hurricane Ike! Damn storm! And ya know what? I only just got my power now!! The unfairness of it all! T-T Newayz...new new new chapter and blah! Plz enjoy it!**

**Again, I am SO sorry for not updating sooner!**

**Disclaimer: I own nadda, zip, zilch...you get the point**

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Talon streaked into the small badger set where his sister lay, waiting. She sat up quickly when he came, wincing from her injury, but despite this meowed, "What's wrong Talon?"

"We have to find a place to hide, Coral," Talon replied swiftly. "Some of those Clan cats I mentioned earlier scented us. I think they're going to track us and drive us out."

"We'll fight!"

"We don't stand a chance!"

The two siblings glared at each other, each determined to have it their own way. At last, Coral averted her eyes, and Talon won the standoff. "Fine," Coral agreed resentfully. "We'll leave it that's what you really want." She got stiffly to her paws, and Talon peered outside the set.

He heard a pair of low voices approaching quickly. "Too late!" he spat. "Get down and stay out of sight Coral," he ordered.

Before his sister could reply, the dark tom dragged himself out of den and met the patrol with unsheathed claws and a determined snarl. The cat leading the patrol, a dark ginger tom with flaming amber eyes, moved to attack, but a second, larger tom with dark brown-black fur stepped in front of him. The dark tom hissed something, and the ginger tom's eyes flared but he stepped back. The dark tom was obviously in charge.

Two more cats, a black tom and a sandy she-cat, glared at him. Talon spat at them and his hackles rose threateningly. The dark tom stepped closer and growled, "Rogue! Get out of our territory!"

"Make me."

The dark tom narrowed his eyes and then lunged without warning. Talon instinctively pressed down against the ground and ducked the tom's flashing claws. The tom landed heavily, and before he could turn, Talon had slunk beneath his belly, and, using the same technique he'd used on Nightpaw, he sunk his claws into his stomach and knocked the dark cat's hind paw's out from under him. Talon, though with more difficulty due to his larger size, flipped the tom beneath him and raked his claws at his stomach.

The tom retaliated by pounding his own hind claws against Talon's stomach. Talon hissed and swiped at the tom's face with his forepaw. Blood trailed behind his claws. Talon then jumped back and allowed the tom to stand. When he did Talon gave him a defiant glare. The tom snarled and sprang at him again.

As he sidestepped the attack, Talon noticed the ginger tom preparing to charge at him, and tensed. As the dark tom halted and spun around to face him, he glanced from the corner of his eye at the ginger cat, who was moments from attacking. Low to the ground, the dark tom raced at him as the ginger tom kicked off the ground hard.

At the last second Talon dodged sideways and the dark cat's forepaws crashed over nothing as he slid into the earth. The ginger cat screeched in alarm as he slammed into the other male.

Suddenly strong jaws grabbed his scruff from behind and heaved him into the air. Surprised, Talon flailed and struggled, but the cat had a firm grip. The cat began to shake him and then suddenly released him. Talon flew through the air and struck a nearby tree heavily. Almost instantly another cat—the sand-colored one—tore him away from the tree and pinned him to the ground.

Talon glared at the cat and bared his fangs. As the sandy cat thrust her head forward to grab at his throat, he snapped his head to the side and quickly clamped his jaws onto her own throat before she could do the same to his. He put pressure on the cat's throat, but not enough to cause a fatal wound. The cat struggled and he tightened his grip; a small taste of copper hit his tongue.

Then she slammed a hind paw down onto his stomach. Her claws tore and clutched his flesh. Pain blurred his vision, but he refused to black out. Releasing the she-cat's neck, he kicked her away and stumbled to his paws only to be hit from behind by the ginger tom.

As he rolled onto his back the dark cat reared over him and dealt stunning blows to his head with his forepaws. The fight finally torn from him, Talon went limp and closed his eyes.

He suddenly opened them again when the she-cat exclaimed, "There's a badger set over here! With the smell of cat!"

A black tom slipped quickly into the den. "There's another one here!" The tom snarled and he heard Coral shriek. The tom grunted and growled. Coral screeched again, this time in pain, and then fell silent. When the tom came back out, he had his jaws wrapped tightly around Coral's scruff. Coral herself was limp and unconscious.'

Talon felt rage surge in him at the sight of him injured sister and tried to stand. However he soon felt a clawed paw tear into his shoulders a cold voice hissed into his ear, "You'll stay down if you know what's good for you." Unable to respond, Talon merely glared at the ginger tom as he grabbed his scruff and began dragging him through the forest.

--

The patrol returned as the sky began to lighten. Darkstar led them back into camp. With them were the two intruders. Blackwind came after Darkstar, with the smaller of the intruders handing from his jaws. Redtalon followed behind with Talon's scruff held between his fangs. Bringing up the rear was Sandfeather.

Darkstar and Sandfeather were both bleeding; Talon himself was covered in scratches, and the second intruder had a long healing rat-bite in her shoulder.

As Darkstar jumped up into the large tree branch hanging over his den to address the Can. He waited with little patience as Redtalon and Blackwind threw the two cats into the center of camp.

Now that the sky had lightened, Nightpaw could easily tell the cats' fur coloring.

The smaller one, presumably Talon's sister, had dark brown fur with a long thin tail. The last half of her tail was white, as was her chest and ear-tips. Her eyes were a dark amber-brown color, with a fierce independent flare in them. The she-cat scowled at Nightpaw's Clanmates with visible hatred.

Talon's appearance startled her. He had an extremely dark brown tabby pelt, with thin black tabby markings. His muzzle, chest, and forepaws were white, as was his tail-tip. His eyes were an intense shade of green, enflamed with such a frightful fury. A single word came to mind when she saw him: _Hawkkit._

She hadn't thought of her kithood friend for a long time. Nightpaw pushed her way through the crowd of gathering cats to get a closer look at the tabby Talon. Now she could see a distinct scar over one of his eyes, adding to his dark, cold glare. Nightkit swallowed. He was such a young cat—perhaps a moon older than herself, if not less! What could have caused this awful wound? What could have had such an impact in his life to make him this cold?

Talon's eyes found hers, and Nightpaw felt a flicker of hope. That hope, however, was soon doused. Talon's eyes hardened into emerald slits and he bared his fangs at her. A few of her Clanmates hissed at him, and his ears flattened. The she-cat pressed her back against his and bristled.

Darkstar quickly demanded silence. His claws tightly gripping the wood beneath his paws, he spat, "Who are you rogues?"

Talon tipped his head back and glared defiantly at him. "Wouldn't you like to know?" he sneered.

"That's why I'm asking," Darkstar growled.

Talon's lip curled and he said nothing.

"Answer me or I'll have your littermate's belly slit!"

"How pathetic. The _leader of a mighty Clan_"—sarcasm was dripping form these words—"has to stoop so low as to threaten the life of a young she-cat," Talon mocked. Then, hackles rising and fur spiked up, he snarled, "Fight me again. Let's see if I can get you to crash into another of your cats like last time."

Before Darkstar could respond, Frostwind howled in fury. "Don't talk to our leader like that!" The white she-cat unsheathed her claws and dug them into the ground.

Talon snorted and lashed his tail at her, but otherwise ignored the she-cat.

Redtalon spat at him, "I'll be glad to fight you again, runt. But this time you won't be so lucky!"

Talon turned his head in Redtalon's direction, his eyes burning with rage. Some of Nightpaw's Clanmates gasped in horror as they saw his face. Considering the low hisses from the other cats, Nightpaw assumed they—some of them, at least—remembered Hawkkit. And frankly, she couldn't blame them for being shocked. Talon looked like Hawkkit's twin. He was even about the same age Hawkkit would be had he lived. The only problem was that Hawkkit didn't have a sister.

_Or did he?_

He was, after all, a rogue kit. He could easily have had a sister that wandered away or something…

But this wasn't Hawkkit. This cat was cold and brutal. Hawkkit would never act this way.

The she-cat hissed something in Talon's ear, whose expression suddenly became unreadable. His eyes were blank, yet cold all the same. The she-cat looked up at Darkstar. "We are Talon and Coral," she told him, her voice, though cold with a sharp edge, was calm.

Darkstar leaned forward. "You appear too young to be wandering around by yourselves. How old are you?"

The she-cat Coral narrowed her eyes and scanned the Clan cats. Spotting Silverpaw, she flicked her tail at him. "About that cat's age," she responded smoothly.

"Nine moons," Frostwind mused. "Still quite young."

Blackwind stepped forward. "You fight well for a cat your age without a mentor," he remarked to Talon.

"You learn what you have to when you're alone," Talon snapped, his voice filled with spite.

The other cats, still unsettled by Talon's ghostly resemblance to Hawkkit, muttered amongst themselves. Then Gladeshadow called, "What will you do with them?"

Darkstar seemed troubled by this question. Glancing at his Clan's worried and frightful expressions, he replied uneasily, "I will discuss it with Frostwind and the senior warriors tomorrow and give my answer next Moonhigh. Until then, rest well." Narrowing his eyes, he shouted, "Sharddust! I want you to guard these two at the Shadowwhisper's den. Shadowwhisper!"

The dark gray she-cat appeared at the entrance of the medicine cat's den with Swiftpaw at her side.

"Shadowwhisper, treat these rogues' wounds. We don't want infections in the Clan."

Shadowwhisper dipped her head and then padded up to Talon and Coral. She, Swiftpaw, and Sharddust herded them towards the medicine car's den.

--

Unable to contain her curiosity much longer, Nightpaw slipped from the apprentice's den and would've made it out unnoticed if it weren't for Rainpaw's sharp ears. The gray she-cat perked up, her eyes glittering in amusement.

"What are you doing, Nightpaw?" she called loudly, causing some of the other apprentices to stir.

Silently cursing her friend, she replied, "Just…getting some fresh air…"

"Or are you going off to meet the prisoners?"

Nightpaw hissed at her friend and lashed her tail. Rainpaw snickered as she hit a nerve. She, however, knew when to stop teasing and began to exchange whispers—about Nightpaw, the black apprentice thought—with Spottedpaw. Rolling her eyes, Nightpaw emerged into the camp and, shaking out her fur, padded towards the medicine cat den. A cool early morning breeze ruffled her pelt. The moon was sinking ever lower and the first lights of morning painted the sky.

Swiftpaw greeted her at the medicine cat's den. Talon and Coral were both crouched in two separate nests, their glowing eyes clearly reflecting the distrust they held for the Clan cats. Swiftpaw dipped his head to Nightpaw but said nothing. As quickly as he had appeared he was back inside the far end of the den, sorting through herbs with Shadowwhisper. Sharddust was standing beside the entrance to the den, her expression unreadable and her tail curled tightly and stiffly around her forepaws.

Coral lifted her head unenthusiastically at her arrival and then allowed her head to fall back onto her paws. Shadowwhisper brought over something for the rat bite—burdock root, it was called right?—and began to apply it to the cut.

Talon cast her a cold look and curled up with his back to her.

Nightpaw came up to Talon and gently prodded his shoulder with a forepaw. The tabby didn't even respond. At a second prod his muscles rippled beneath his pelt as he pulled away from her. "I didn't rat you out, Talon."

"I'd like to believe that—I really would."

"It's the truth."

She was whispering, trying to stay as quiet as possible. If anyone found out she knew about his intrusion…she shuddered just thinking about it. But so far, it didn't seem as if anyone had heard them.

"I still don't think I can trust you."

"Why?"

"My time as a rogue has taught me a few things. It's a kill or be killed world; protect yourself before protecting someone else; eat whatever you can to survive; _do _whatever you can to survive; and _never trust anyone."_

Nightpaw shuffled her forepaws. "What about Coral? You trust your sister, don't you?"

"Don't you _dare_ try to use that against me," Talon growled, finally turning to face her. "That's different."

"How?"

"You're just full of questions, eh?"

"You have no answer."

Talon's lip curled.

"How'd you get that scar?" Nightpaw asked, flicking her tail-tip at the scar crossing over his eye.

"Instead of probing through my personal life, why don't you ask about something else?"

"Sorry. It must be a touchy subject."

Talon sighed. "I got that scar in a scuffle with another rogue. There. Happy?"

"Not really."

Talon sneered. "Then why'd you ask?"

"No reason."

"You're really getting on my nerves."

"Sorry." Nightpaw shrugged. "I'd better go now. I should try to get a _little _sleep. If I fall asleep on my paws Redtalon—the ginger tom that brought you here"—Talon hissed at the name—"would throw a fit. He's my mentor, but he acts like my _tor_mentor more than anything."

"Poor you."

Nightpaw forced a smile. "Despite your icy attitude, I think we can be friends someday."

Talon remained silent.

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	6. Chapter 6

**Next chapter. Don't have much to say today except R&R and the disclaimer, of course.**

**Disclaimer: I don's own anything.**

**Edit: I accidentally made a mistake and it was pointed out by Liza Taylor. I accidentally uploaded 2 chapters in this, but I edited it and hopefully it won't happen again. Yet again, I'm sorry for the mistake.**

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**Chapter 5: Darkstar's Decision**

As morning stretched on the next day, Nightpaw was ordered to take a piece of fresh-kill to Talon and Coral as part of her lingering punishment. She selected the largest mouse she could find—which wasn't all that big. It looked kind of scrawny, and just by picking it up she could tell the meat was stringy. Still it was better than nothing.

When she brought them the fresh-kill, Talon and Coral just gazed blankly at it. Finally Talon turned away, muttering something Nightpaw didn't quite catch under her breath. Coral stretched and parted her jaws in a wide yawn. "Sorry, but we don't accept prey from other cats unless absolutely necessary. We prefer to hunt for ourselves."

Nightpaw shifted uncomfortably. "I doubt Darkstar would let you two hunt out in the territory," she began uneasily. "You are prisoners, after all…but I'll ask."

At her father's den she paused outside, flicking her ear when she heard Darkstar's and several other cats—including Frostwind and Gladeshadow—voices discussing the rogues' fates in hurried, hushed voices.

Suddenly fearing she might get caught eavesdropping and prevented from attending the next Gathering, she cleared her throat loudly and the cats were instantly silenced. "D-Darkstar?" she stammered.

"Yes?"

Nightpaw hastily scrambled inside and lowered her eyes, feeling somewhat unnerved by the multiple pairs of curious, glowing eyes staring at her. "What is it, Nightpaw?" Darkstar questioned.

"Talon and Coral won't accept the prey I brought them," Nightpaw explained. "They'd rather hunt for themselves."

Darkstar narrowed his eyes and some of the cats hissed, including Frostwind. She snow-colored she-cat's hackles rose, but she forced her fur to flatten in an effort to stay calm. After a moment's pause, Darkstar said, "Very well. Frostwind, take Sharddust, Nightpaw, and the rogues out to hunt. They are only allowed to catch a single piece of prey each. If they try to run, bring them back by whatever means necessary."

Frostwind seemed about to protest, but the dark tomcat growled and hissed something into her ear. Her expression suddenly became unreadable and she nodded stiffly. With a lash of her tail she left the den and called to Nightpaw to hurry up.

Outside in camp Frostwind barked an order sharply to Sharddust, who was still guarding Talon and Coral—and the siblings. The two young cats stood and stretched slowly, as if getting amusement from Frostwind's annoyance.

At long last, though, they were out in the woods and Coral and Talon ran ahead a little, their steps always silent no matter how fast they sped across dead leaves. She scented the air hungrily and followed trails that started out stale and gradually became fresher. Nightpaw herself began to taste the air, trying to pinpoint any prey. She still had to feed the elders before she could eat—she might as well catch some fresh fresh-kill for them.

Suddenly Coral slid into a hunter's crouch and Talon glanced at her. The brown she-cat nodded and the tabby tom slowly slunk in a half-circle until he was opposite of Coral. There was a rustle from the space between them and then a lizard shot out from under some leaves. Coral tensed but did not move quite yet. The reptile flew towards Talon, who had not noticed the tabby in the shadows. Talon suddenly lunged from his hiding spot, his features twisting in a fearsome snarl.

The lizard instantly whirled around and scampered back the way it came, only to have its throat snap as Coral finally sprang and brought her forepaws down over its head. The lizard went limp beneath her claws and she sat back on her haunches, holding the reptile by the tail.

Despite her better judgment, Sharddust flicked her tail tip. "Nice teamwork." Sharddust's short dark cream-colored pelt was turned a creamy shade of gray in the shadows cast by the high branches. Her icy eyes flickered.

Frostwind grunted and the siblings once again began to scent the air. This time it was Talon who scented prey, but he reacted differently than his sister. He tipped his head back and peered at the higher branches of a nearby tree and spotted a squirrel gnawing at an acorn. With a powerful leap Talon latched onto the bark of a second tree beside the one with the squirrel and slowly worked his way up. When he reached a higher branch that was intertwined with one of the branches from the tree beside it, Talon darted across without hesitation. The branches sagged slightly under his weight but he made it across.

From there he slowly began his descend, heading straight for the squirrel. When he was perched on the end of a tree branch hanging directly over the squirrel he motioned to Coral with his tail, who eyed the squirrel intently before taking her place several mouse-lengths from the roots. She scraped her unsheathed claws over the dirt and narrowed her eyes before twitching an ear.

Talon nodded and then allowed himself to drop on the branch behind the squirrel with a thump. The squirrel jumped but sat frozen with fear for a split second. Talon yowled in its ears and the rodent leapt from the tree branch into Coral's waiting claws.

The brown rogue sprang up onto her hind paws as the squirrel dashed down and slapped the squirrel out of the air with an unsheathed forepaw. The rodent squeaked and was hurled against a tree trunk, where it lay stunned. Talon quickly raced down the tree and pinned the unmoving squirrel beneath his forepaws. He dealt a swift nip to the throat and its struggles slowly ceased.

Sharddust and Frostwind exchanged quick glances. Then the cream-colored she-cat stood and padded slowly towards the siblings. "That was…amazing. You two were perfectly in sync."

Talon glanced at her suspiciously from the corner of his eye.

Coral averted her gaze and replied, "We have to work together a lot of the time to catch prey."

Nightpaw was suddenly wrenched from the conversation by the scent of prey tickling her scent glands. Nightpaw reared onto her haunches and took in another deep breath. She heard a small rustle some ways off from the patrol and snaked a glance over her shoulder. Sharddust seemed to be stalking something, and Frostwind was standing stiffly between Talon and Coral, her tight-lipped expression making it clear that she didn't want to be here.

Quickly then, she crouched down, and began to follow the faint scent trail. Nightpaw slowly and quietly slipped forward, ears pricked and eyes alert. Soon enough she caught sight of what had caught her attention—a squirrel. It was pretty rare to see one in ShadowClan territory leaf-fall. Perhaps it was chased across the border and into her Clan's territory by an over-excited ThunderClan apprentice? Either way, it was ShadowClan prey now and she was intent on catching it.

She inched closer cautiously, careful not make even the smallest sound, and then paused for a split second. That was all it took. Frostwind's ears cocked towards her. Obviously not noticing the prey she was stalking, she cried loudly, "Nightpaw!" The squirrel jerked up rigidly, eyes wide and nose twitching. Nightpaw lurched forward in an effort to catch it before it could get away, but its long furry tail only just whisked under her claws.

Nightpaw groaned inwardly but gave chase either way. She instantly knew they were heading for the ThunderClan border. If she could just catch it before then… two streaks of brown flashed on either side. Startled, she fell back and the two cats pulled ahead. Then she recognized Talon and Coral. How had they caught up so…? Never mind. Talon didn't slow down. He kept his pace quick and steady. Coral, however, glanced back, her eyes sparking. "Come on, Nightpaw!" she meowed. "This is your prey, we're just helping! Hurry!" Then she sped ahead.

Somewhat flustered, Nightpaw hurried to catch up and soon fell into step with Talon and Coral and was swiftly pulling ahead. The squirrel let out a sharp squealing cry and bounded ahead. Coral and Talon suddenly veered off sharply to the side and began circling around, easily pulling ahead of the squirrel and Nightpaw. Nightpaw felt a claw of relief when she saw the siblings halt at the border, ready to turn the squirrel around should it try to escape.

With newfound confidence, Nightpaw tensed the muscles in her hind legs and then leapt forward. She slammed her claws down on the squirrel and dug them into its soft flesh. Blood squirted up from the wounds and Nightpaw dealt the killing blow to the throat with a quick flick of her claws.

Coral and Talon sat up straight from their crouching positions and padded over to her. From behind, Frostwind and Sharddust raced from the trees, skidding to a stop when they saw them waiting patiently at the border. Sharddust was carrying Coral's lizard and Talon's squirrel. Frostwind's pale eyes were smoldering. Stiffly, she said, "Well caught, Nightpaw." To Talon and Coral, she meowed, "You two as well. Let's head back to camp. I'm sure Darkstar had made his decision by now, and Moonhigh isn't too long away."

--

Nightpaw kneaded the ground anxiously as Darkstar called for a Clan meeting. What would the dark tom's decision be? She hoped he'd let them stay in the Clan…and if he didn't, she hoped he wouldn't be too hard on them.

Darkstar sat tall and proud high on the branch hanging over his den from which he addressed the Clan. He cleared his throat and the loud, inquiring voices of Nightpaw's fellow Clanmates quieted somewhat. Darkstar raised his tail and called, "Bring Talon and Coral forward!"

Frostwind and Redtalon roughly pushed the two rogues into the center of the crowding cats, all of whom instantly backed away with spiteful hisses. Darkstar allowed his Clan to hiss and jeer for several moments, allowing them to get it out of their systems, before yowling, "Silence!" The cats were immediately silenced, and they turned their eyes, all burning with the gnawing sense of curiosity.

Darkstar rose to all fours on his perch and shouted, "I have decided…"—he cast his eyes around his Clan, carefully examining their expressions, and then looked at Talon and Coral, who sat tensed and anxious in the center of the camp—"to allow the rogue siblings to remain with ShadowClan and train as warrior apprentices!"

The reaction he received was the one he expected. At first he allowed them to yowl out in protest, but raised his tail for silence after several long moments. Beneath him, Talon and Coral were hissing and crouched low, glaring at the protesting cats surrounding them. The Clan eventually quieted down and gazed up at their leader, waiting for him to continue. At last, the dark tom yowled, "Until they have received their warrior names, they will be known as Talonpaw and Coralpaw!"

Darkstar fell silent for several long moments, scanning the faces of his warriors and deciding which would mentor the two siblings. Finally his eyes found those of two of his warriors, Wolfcry and Shadowtail. Raising his voice, Darkstar called, "Wolfcry will be mentor to Talonpaw!" He paused as the large gray tom strode up to the smaller apprentice and then added, "And Shadowtail will mentor Coralpaw!"

Wolfcry was a large gray tom with long, shaggy fur. His eyes were leering yellow, and he had a long scar over his left eye. His right ear was shredded, and he had a set claw-scars across his back. Shadowtail was a long-legged she-cat with frosty white fur and hazel eyes. She had a long thick black tail, with a short horse-like mane of spiked-up black fur beginning at the base of her tail and winding up along her spine before stopping between her shoulders. Many cats suspected she was Frostwind's sister, but Frostwind denied it and Shadowtail wouldn't speak about her family.

Plus, the two she-cats were constantly arguing.

Anyway, the two warriors took their place on either side of their new apprentices and sat up tall, their chins raised with pride. This was the first time either cat had been assigned an apprentice.

Darkstar slowly sat back down and curled his tail around his paws. He gazed down intently at the dark tabby tom, who slowly tipped his head back and matched his stare with a gold-eyed amber look. For a moment, something flickered in the tabby's eyes, but before Darkstar could tell what it was, Talonpaw's eyes had cleared again.


	7. Chapter 7

**Wow. I'm sorry I have not updated in a long time, guys, really. But I sort of lost inspiration for this fanfic, but I won't abandon it, promise. It might just be harder for me to writer chapters.**

**In other news, I would have updated sooner but last week my computor crashed and it's fixed, but I have no Microsoft Word, so I'll probably have to use Notepad.**

**Some of you may have already read this when I accidentally uploaded it with my last update before editting it, but yeah. Anyway...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own warriors. Just the plot and characters.**

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Chapter 6: Border Dispute

The following morning Nightpaw woke to the first pale ray of sunlight filtering into the apprentice's den. She sprang up excitedly and looked around. Talonpaw and Coralpaw had moved into the den last night. The siblings had each made their nest in the far side of the den, closest to Nightpaw's own nest.

Nightpaw jumped slightly when she noticed Talonpaw's eerie green eyes staring at her. When she blinked the dark tabby stretched his jaws in a wide yawn. Coralpaw raised her head from her paws and blinked, her own eyes glittering with excitement. When she saw that Nightpaw was awake she demanded, "So what are we going to do today?"

Nightpaw stammered, "Um, I don't know. It depends on our mentors."

Almost as if she had planned it, Shadowtail stuck her snowy head into the den and meowed, "Nightpaw, Talonpaw, Coralpaw, we're going to do the dawn patrol near the ThunderClan border."

Coralpaw nodded eagerly and leapt to her paws. Talonpaw stood up much slower, his eyes half-closed in boredom and a nonchalant expression on his face. With small flick of his tail he padded after his sister with Nightpaw slowly following at his heels.

In camp, Shadowtail signaled them over to the camp entrance. With her were Wolfcry, Redtalon, and Talonflare, Silverpaw's mentor. "Okay, we'll eat after the dawn patrol, all right?" Wolfcry meowed, his eyes hard. He was obviously leading the patrol. "We'll be patrolling the ThunderClan border and we'll be renewing the scent markers. Everyone understand? No questions? Okay, good. Let's go." With that, the large gray tom spun around and padded out into the forest with the rest of the patrol following at a quick trot.

Talonpaw was silent and his expression stony the entire way to the border, whereas Coralpaw was a bubbling, excited mass of brown fur. She bounded all over the place, sometimes straying off to the sides, hurrying ahead of the patrol, or falling somewhat behind. Shadowtail and Wolfcry found it amusing, their twinkling eyes giving away their thoughts; Redtalon found it irksome.

As the border came within sight, Nightpaw sensed Talonpaw bristle beside her. When she squinted to look, a growl rose in her throat. A patrol of ThunderClan cats were standing right at the edge of the border! Her fur spiked up in alarm and anger, and she resisted the urge to race up and slash her claws along the nose of one of the apprentices, Toadpaw. The grayish tom's eyes glinted when he caught sight of her, and he smiled, sort of. Mostly he just bared his teeth in an odd grin.

A growl sounded from Talonpaw's throat as well as he neared the border. Toadpaw sneered at the tabby, and Talonpaw curled his lips away from glinting fangs. Wolfcry's eyes flashed with alarm for a moment, and then they hardened into cold unreadable yellow slits. Talonpaw kept pace with his mentor and the two cats stood at the border, Talonpaw only slightly a few mouse-lengths behind Wolfcry. Wolfcry eyed each of the cats in turn and then his gaze settled onto the leader of the patrol, and ThunderClan's leader, Snowstar. The long-furred white she-cat's bright green eyes were suspicious slits, and the claws on her forepaws were unsheathed.

Wolfcry curled his lip, not even bothering to hide his hatred. Snowstar had only just recently become leader, and when she had been a warrior she had never gotten along well with Wolfcry, and it went beyond the usual Clan rivalries. Wolfcry stiffly sat on his haunches and growled through gritted teeth, "Well, well, to what do we owe this…'pleasure'?"

Snowstar flicked her tail. "We have scented foreign cats in our territory."

"What does this have to do with us?"

"I merely wanted to ask if you knew who these cats were."

"Rogues, no doubt."

"Oh?" Snowstar's expression hardened. "So you have nothing to do with the fact that there have been traces of killed prey in our territory—and the fact that the scent trail always leads back to ShadowClan?" Snowstar was growling now, and her hackles had risen threateningly.

"Of course we have nothing to do with it!" Wolfcry snarled, outraged.

"Really?" one of the warriors—and golden tom—sneered. "Wasn't it Darkstar who announced that prey was little short, what with it being late in leaf-fall and all."

Redtalon's eyes flashed and he lunged forward, only just halting at the border. A growl welled up from within his throat and he snarled, his features twisting gruesomely. With a vicious growl, he hissed, "ShadowClan aren't thieves!"

"Oh yeah?" the golden tom challenged. "Why don't you prove it?"

Redtalon's claws flexed. He looked about ready to bring his claws down over the golden tom's face but kept himself rigidly in place. With a sneer, he spat, "We have no need to steal. Besides, what fun would it be to steal from overfed weakling kittypets?"

The golden tom's lips curled back and his eyes flashed.

Snowstar whipped her head around and snapped, "Not a single step, Thornshadow."

The golden tom—Thornshadow—bristled, but fell silent, though he continued to glare furiously at Redtalon. Toadpaw's nose suddenly crinkled and he sniffed the air loudly. After a second or two of scenting, his head jerked in Talonpaw's direction and his eyes narrowed. "He doesn't have a full ShadowClan scent!" Toadpaw yowled. "He smells like a rogue!"

Talonpaw and Coralpaw both bristled, and Toadpaw bared his fangs threateningly. Thornshadow took a step forward, his eyes glittering and hissed, "Looks like we found our thief." With a glance at Coralpaw, he added, "Or _thieves_."

Shadowtail shouldered her way past Wolfcry and pressed her muzzle against Thornshadow, her eyes narrowed and fangs bore. "There are no _'thieves' _in ShadowClan!" she spat.

"But you cannot deny those apprentices are rogues!" Snowstar roughly shoved Thornshadow aside and glared at the ShadowClan cats.

Wolfcry cringed, and uttered a low growl, but did not say anything.

Snowstar's lip curled in disgust and she spat, "Exactly!"

Suddenly Nightpaw could stay silent no longer. She just had to come to her friends' defense. "They may be rogues but they aren't thieves!" she exclaimed, eyes narrowed. "And now they are full-fledges members of ShadowClan! You have no right to call them otherwise!"

Snowstar's eyes spun towards Nightpaw and the white she-cat's hackles rose threateningly. Nightpaw glared back in defiance and Snowstar growled, "Keep your little nose out of this. This is _warriors _business!"

"Then why are you here, kittypet?" Shadowtail demanded furiously.

Snowstar's eyes blazed with anger and she lunged at Shadowtail before any of the cats could blink. Shadowtail yowled and writhed beneath Snowstar's slashing claws and snapping fangs. In an instant the two patrols leaped at each other, claws unsheathed and fur spiked up.

Nightpaw saw a flash of gray and a moment later felt Toadpaw pin her roughly to the ground. She felt his claws push past her fur and puncture skin, drawing fresh blood with small flashes of pain. Nightpaw gasped as teeth grabbed her scruff and bit down hard. She squirmed frantically as Toadpaw's muzzle hovered near her ear. His breath rasped in her ear for a few seconds, and then he hissed, "Still we're kittypets?" Without waiting for an answer he clamped down hard on the back of Nightpaw's neck. A yowl tore free from her throat and her struggles intensified.

Then, suddenly, Toadpaw's jaws slackened and his head snapped back, as if he'd been struck. Nightpaw felt the weight pinning her down lift and she scrambled to her feet. Only a fox-length or two away was Talonpaw. The large tabby held Toadpaw in his jaws by the nape of the gray apprentice's neck and was shaking him wildly, flashing teeth visible. Toadpaw's face was twisted in alarm, fear, and fury. The smaller cat flailed vainly, but Talonpaw was twice his size and far stronger. Finally Talonpaw threw the gray cat over the border. Toadpaw landed, stunned, on his side of the border and gazed fearfully as Talonpaw loomed closer. Talonpaw bared his fangs, fore-claws unsheathed and the fur long his spin bristling. Talonpaw's back arched and his muscles locked and tensed as he seemingly prepared to lunge. His face twisted into a look of rage as his jaws stretched wide in a furious hissing snarl.

Toadpaw was back on his paws in an instant, his eyes wide with horror. A strangled mix between a yowl and a moan escaped his lips and he turned tail and fled back into his territory.

Almost immediately Talonpaw's horrifying appearance vanished. His back straitened, his fur flattened, his lips fell back over his teeth and his stiffened tail loosened. He turned to face Nightpaw, his expression blank and his eyes unreadable. "Are you okay?"

Nightpaw nodded, stammering, "Yeah…" She couldn't bring herself to look at him. She remembered how her pulse had quickened when she had seen him, the very image of fear and rage. But when she finally did raise her sapphire eyes to meet his emerald ones, he had already turned away and was running to help Coralpaw, who was grappling with the second apprentice in the ThunderClan patrol, a pale ginger she-cat with a white chest, face, tail-tip, and face named Goldenpaw.

Coralpaw battered Goldenpaw's belly with quick hind paws, claws unsheathed and leaving long red lines behind. Blood flew as Coralpaw's claws sliced again and again at Goldenpaw's stomach. The ginger she-cat's eyes blazed with pain, but she fearlessly continued to snap and claw at Coralpaw, despite her injuries.

Then Talonpaw barreled into Goldenpaw's side, head down and ears flat. The force of impact tore Goldenpaw away from Coralpaw and sent her skidding into the dirt; Talonpaw himself skidded back on his paws a few mouse-lengths. Coralpaw lurched to her paws and gasped, "Thanks. Want to help me finish it up?" Talonpaw nodded and slithered up on Goldenpaw's left while Coralpaw crept in on her right.

Nightpaw watched, as though hypnotized, in fascination as the two siblings mirrored the other's actions move for move. This was the first time she'd actually seen how far their bond ran. They were perfectly in sync. Not a single flash of hesitation or prick of doubt could be seen within their steps as they circled their prey.

Goldenpaw slowly staggered back onto all fours and tried to put on a defiant face as Talonpaw and Coralpaw encircled her. Talonpaw suddenly crouched low, still moving, and tensed as if to leap. His claws flexed and Goldenpaw focused her attention on him, her tail lashing. As she prepared to counter his move, Coralpaw sprang quick as lightning and tackled Goldenpaw, who had realized too late that Talonpaw's lunge had been a hoax.

Goldenpaw twisted beneath Coralpaw's claws and kicked her away. Coralpaw sprang again, but landed short by her own will, her nose only a mouse-length away from Goldenpaw's. As she landed she jerked out a brown foreleg and swiped her claws at Goldenpaw's nose. The tips grazed the surface of Goldenpaw's nose and she stumbled back, only to have Talonpaw leap from behind. His forepaws struck her hind paws and knocked them out from under her. As Goldenpaw's hind quarters fell to the ground Coralpaw lunged in again, head tucked low as she snaked beneath Goldenpaw. Coralpaw then lunged straight up with forepaws held rigid. Her claws gripped the side of Goldenpaw's neck as her teeth bit into her throat.

Goldenpaw shrieked and pulled free from Coralpaw's grip as Talonpaw scored his claws down her flank. With another ear-piercing shriek Goldenpaw scrambled safely over the border and high-tailed it back to ThunderClan.

Coralpaw straightened up, panting heavily. She smiled at Talonpaw, who nodded curtly in reply and bounded off to his mentor's side. Coralpaw herself leapt to Shadowtail's aid as the white she-cat tried to fend off a tomcat nearly three times her size. Nightpaw was suddenly aware that she had done nothing in the battle and searched for an opponent when she felt Thornshadow's weight drop down on her.

The golden tomcat screeched in her ear, making her head throb. Thornshadow pounded at her back with unsheathed hind paws as he held her in place with his forepaws, one on either of her shoulders. Nightpaw yowled and began to buck, trying to shake him off. But this only doubled Thornshadow's anger and he sank his claws deeper. Yet again Nightpaw felt the sudden lack of pressure and then Thornshadow was yanked off of her. She looked up to see Redtalon hurl the tomcat onto the ground. Redtalon brought his paws down heavily onto Thornshadow's chest before he even hit the ground, slamming him roughly into the dirt.

As Thornshadow's eyes widened, Redtalon sneered, "Stay away from my apprentice!" He then released the golden cat, delivering one last swift blow to his haunches as Thornshadow fled into his territory. "And stay on your side of the border!" Redtalon added with a yowl. Nightpaw lay stunned where she was. Had Redtalon really saved her? Maybe she was wrong about him… Her thoughts changed instantly as Redtalon glared at her, his eyes leering. "Well? Get back to fight! Defend your territory, slacker!" The he leapt away, leaving Nightpaw fuming.

As Nightpaw targeted a cat that was creeping in behind Coralpaw, Snowstar suddenly raced past her, with Wolfcry at her heels. Wolfcry snapped one last time at her heels as she pelted over the ThunderClan border before coming to an abrupt halt. His sides were heaving and his shaggy gray fur was red with blood, but his eyes had a fierce glint in them as he parted his jaws and crowed, "That's right! And this will happen yet again if you so much as put a paw over our border!"

Snowstar hissed in response, stopping briefly to snarl, "This isn't the end of it yet, Wolfcry!"

Wolfcry's hackles rose and he lowered his head threateningly, returning the hiss.

Snowstar spat and cried, "ThunderClan! Retreat for now!"

Instantly the fight stopped and the ThunderClan cats pulled away from the ShadowClan patrol, fleeing at top-speed back towards camp. As the last of her cats disappeared into the woods, Snowstar gave the ShadowClan patrol one final glare before racing after her Clanmates with a final lash of her tail.

Wolfcry remained panting at the border until the last traces of ShadowClan had disappeared. Then, at last, he turned to face his fellow cats. He continued to pant heavily for a few long moments as the rest of the patrol gazed solemnly back at him, and then he smiled and meowed, "Great job, everyone." He padded stiffly up to Talonpaw, limping. Looking closely, Nightpaw could see a nasty gash on one of his hind legs, as well as a long cut across his snout; blood smeared his muzzle. He flicked Talonpaw's ear with his tail and rasped, "You fought well for someone so young."

Talonpaw didn't swell with pride like any other apprentice Nightpaw knew. Instead his eyes flashed, perhaps with pride, and he straightened his back, his claws digging into the ground.

Shadowtail grinned as well and flicked her tail in Coralpaw's direction. "Coralpaw fought with skills and bravery as well," she purred. "During the fight she helped me chase away a cat much larger than either of us."

Wolfcry nodded. "Well done," he acknowledged.

The only one who didn't mention their apprentice was Redtalon, but Nightpaw expected that. Redtalon stood and turned away. Glancing over his shoulder he meowed, "If all is well now, I think we should get back to camp and report to Darkstar."

Wolfcry nodded briskly. "You're right. Let's go."

--

Darkstar's fur stood on end in rage when Wolfcry finished the report. "What? They attacked?"

"Yes." Wolfcry sounded weary. Nightpaw knew that instead of heading to the medicine cat's den to treat his wounds he had reported directly to Darkstar. Nightpaw pitied the older warrior. He had been giving a detailed account of the battle while she had her brother check for injuries, even though hers weren't all that great. Talonpaw and Coralpaw hadn't been severely wounded either. Only a few minor cuts and slashes. Redtalon was mostly fine as well.

"But you drove them away?"

"Yes. They accused Talonpaw and Coralpaw of stealing prey and Shadowtail called Snowstar a kittypet. That is how the fight began."

For a moment Nightpaw saw amusement in Darkstar's eyes, but it faded almost instantly.

"Well. As long as they're gone…," Darkstar meowed.

Wolfcry's eyes suddenly sparked with pride. "Talonpaw fought with courage and absolutely no hesitation whatsoever. He battled like a true warrior."

"Coralpaw did too," Shadowtail piped up, joining the conversation.

Darkstar smiled faintly. "I'm sure she did. I heard that you're the reason the fight broke out."

Shadowtail straightened up and looked Darkstar in the eye. "I couldn't just stand there and let them accuse my apprentice and her brother of prey-theft, could I?"

"But did you have to start a fight over it?"

Solemnly, Shadowtail replied, "They would have attacked with or without my provocation."

"Are you certain?" Darkstar pressed.

"Dead-certain, Darkstar."

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**So yeah. R&R**


	8. Chapter 8

**YES. Finally a REAL update - a chapter you haven't seen :D**

**Originally the Gathering was next but I decided to wait so as not to rush it ;P**

**This chapter focuses more on Swiftpaw, the poor little minor character guy. So I gave him a spot in the limelight, if only for a few pages in Word. Besides, SOMEONE has to have a StarClan warning, right? And it certainly can't be Nightpaw! *eyeroll***

**Either way, new chapter, you MUST be a little bit happy...? No...? Well, I hopse to soon make up for my lack of interest in this fic, mkay? Just don't eat me!**

**Disclaimer: *mutters* How many times must we go over this? *stops muttering* I don't own anything, mkay?**

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Chapter 7: Swiftpaw's Warning

Swiftpaw pricked up his ears, glancing over his shoulder. His sister Nightpaw was curled up just outside the apprentice's den with Rainpaw and Spottedpaw. Rainpaw sat on Nightpaw's left side, while Spottedpaw sat on her right. Coralpaw sat beside Spottedpaw, her ears pressed against her head a little timidly, with a small vole between her forepaws. Talonpaw sat nearby, his back to them. He had his head resting on his forepaws.

Swiftpaw noticed Rainpaw shot a stony glare in Coralpaw's direction. She brown she-cat flinched slightly, but attempted to match the blue-gray apprentice's glare. It wasn't until Talonpaw lifted his head and started hard at Rainpaw did the ShadowClan cat roll her eyes and turn her attention back to her meal. With a snort Talonpaw began to lower his head again. As he did Coralpaw flicked an ear in his direction, seemingly as thanks, and he responded with a flick of his tail tip.

Swiftpaw felt a small pang of sympathy for the brown she-cat. Most of ShadowClan was still wary of the newest apprentices, with the exception of Shadowtail and Wolfcry, the cats' mentors. Though the cats didn't come right out with it, they did show some signs of disgust and spite, maybe even a little fear, but that last one seemed unlikely, in expressions and body language. Of course, most of these signals were directed at Talonpaw, but still… Swiftpaw didn't really understand the tenseness between Talonpaw and some of the ShadowClan cats. But then, he didn't really care that much.

"Swiftpaw!"

Swiftpaw's head jerked around, his eyes finding his mentor, Shadowwhisper, almost immediately. Shadowwhisper flicked her tail tip across her apprentice's ear and meowed, "Is your mind still up in the clouds, Swiftpaw? Or have you descended back to the land of the living?"

"S-Sorry Shadowwhisper!" exclaimed Swiftpaw as he hurried to catch up to his mentor, who had, by this time, gone on ahead a few paces. As he fell into step with the she-cat, he gave a final, quick glance over his shoulder. As he turned back to face forward, he rammed into something solid, covered in long, thick fur. Swiftpaw stumbled back, and when he looked up he let out a little gasp to see his father, Darkstar before him.

Darkstar smiled slightly at Swiftpaw, and looped his tail around his son's shoulders. "Tread carefully, young one. The next cat you bump into might not be as forgiving as I." Darkstar's tail whipped back and leaned down to touch his nose to Swiftpaw, but only briefly. The dark tom pulled away hastily and meowed, "Well. I…I supposed I'll see you when you return from the Moonpool."

"Yeah, okay, Darkstar."

"Go on. Shadowwhisper's waiting."

Swiftpaw stared after his father as he strode through the camp entrance. Darkstar hesitated before fully entering the camp. "Er…is…something wrong, Darkstar?" Mossfang, the tomcat on guard duty, who also happened to be Redtalon's brother, meowed.

Darkstar remained silent for a few moments before meowed, "No. Nothing's wrong. Nothing at all…" Then with a flick of his tail Darkstar was gone.

Swiftpaw didn't have to guess what was troubling him. Darkstar must have seen Talonpaw and Coralpaw with Nightpaw, Rainpaw, and Spottedpaw. Sometimes he was greatly frustrated by his father. At times Swiftpaw found it hard to believe he was really Darkstar's son, the way the two acted towards each other. But anyway, what Swiftpaw found frustrating was the way Darkstar would sometimes stare at Talonpaw. Usually Darkstar's expression was blank and unreadable, but just the way he stared at the tabby… Swiftpaw sighed as he turned away to catch up with Shadowwhisper.

Shadowwhisper gave her apprentice a sideways glance and meowed, "Are you well, Swiftpaw?"

For a few seconds Swiftpaw silently debated over whether he should confide in his mentor, who was almost like a mother to him. Finally he replied, "It's…Darkstar."

"Oh? What about Darkstar?"

"I don't know. He's just…odd. Have you noticed the way he stares at the new apprentices? Talonpaw especially? Almost as if they're a disease. I know some cats are rather upset about his decision…but he it _was_ his decision. So why is he acting like that? Isn't he supposed to be neutral? If he didn't want them in the Clan then why did he let them stay? He could've sent them away—"

Shadowwhisper interrupted him by flicking her tail across him mouth. "You were probably too young to remember…but…do you remember a friend of your sister's?" When Swiftpaw merely stared in confusion, she continued. "Tell me…who are your sister's friends?"

Swiftpaw blinked, but said, "Well, there's Rainpaw and Spottedpaw…Duskpaw—well, maybe not so much with Duskpaw—and Sootpaw."

"Yes…," mewed Shadowwhisper. "But you forgot…Hawkkit."

Swiftpaw's nose crinkled. "Hawkkit? Who's that?"

"I didn't think you'd remember," Shadowwhisper sighed. And I'd bet that the other apprentices don't either. And I'd also bet a moon's worth of meals Darkstar would rather keep it that way. But you must know, Swiftpaw." Shadowwhisper trotted a few more paces, paused, and then meowed, "We still have time. To get to Moonpool we must cross through ThunderClan territory and onto WindClan territory. We should be alone until we near the WindClan border. After all," she murmured, more to herself, "we don't want other Clans to hear of this just yet…"

"Well then, hurry, Shadowwhisper!"

"Very well, very well." Shadowwhisper cleared her throat and then went on. "You're familiar with the tale of Tigerstar, right?" Without waiting for an answer, she continued. "The Clan cats used to live elsewhere. But when the forest was destroyed they were forced to flee to the lake territory. But before that, Tigerstar was the leader of ShadowClan. He wanted to rule over all the Clans, because he thought that cats would be better off living as one large Clan—TigerClan. And so he brought in help from a group of cats that lived as rogues in Twolegplace, a group of cats that called themselves _BloodClan_, led by Scourge. But in the end, Tigerstar double crossed Scourge, and attacked the BloodClan leader when Scourge refused to fight. But Tigerstar had underestimated Scourge and that ended being his downfall."

"Well, okay, but what does this have to do with Hawkkit?"

"Patience, young one. Now, back when Runningfire, my mentor, was still a kit, and before Darkstar was born, there was an attack against ThunderClan. A young warrior was killed in the ambush. The cat that led the attack was, supposedly, a black she-cat with ice-colored eyes, was leader of a group of rogues that called themselves the _New BloodClan._ According to what I've been told, the leader pinned a golden tom down while her followers created a tight circle around her and her victim to keep away the rest of the Clan. And there, before the whole of ThunderClan, the black cat slew the tom and then called for a retreat, but not before delivering the sinister threat, "_Never mess with the cat of ice."_ And of course, ThunderClan couldn't understand this at all."

"Well I don't blame them," Swiftpaw declared. "That riddle's impossible!"

"Yes," Shadowwhisper agreed. "And then…several seasons later, Darkstar was born. He went from Darkkit, to Darkpaw, to Darkfur, and finally Darkstar. He got a mate, your mother Gladeshadow when he was deputy, and shortly before becoming leader you and Nightpaw were born. Not long after the death of our previous leader, a tabby kit was found near our border. It's mother apprarently slain by mistake in a border skirmish with ThunderClan. The patrol that found them buried the mother and brought the kit to ShadowClan, where he was renamed Hawkkit. After about a half-moon had passed, a small group of rogues attacked ShadowClan in the dead of night and Hawkkit was killed. And now—"

"And now Talonpaw arrives," Swiftpaw finished. "Does Talonpaw really look like Hawkkit?"

"Yes…except Hawkkit's build was a little smaller…"

"He was a kit. He could have gotten bigger."

"I suppose. And Hawkkit didn't have those big ugly scars across his eye."

"But he could've gotten those scars at anytime."

"I guess. But there wasn't a body to be found after the raid."

"Not a single one?"

"Nope."

"Could they have taken the body for some reason?"

"…Maybe. Frostwind and Redtalon did stop two cats that were trying to drag away an elder's body…"

"Maybe for some strange ritual. I mean, StarClan can't be the only ancestors' in the skies, right?"

"I guess not."

"Okay, but how does BloodClan fit into this?"

"Well, I never could discuss it with anyone, except for Runningfire, but he was in his final seasons then. I told him my theory, that they could have been cats from BloodClan, the same group that attacked ThunderClan all those seasons ago. He said it was a possibility, but I think he was just humoring me."

"Oh. Well, then…"

Suddenly a cat's cry pierced the night. Swiftpaw and Shadowwhisper glanced up to see a small tom, his apprentice, and a golden tabby. The brown tom was WindClan's medicine cat. His name was Flamepatch. His apprentice was Swallowpaw, a pretty brown she-cat with a crimson chest and white underbelly. The golden tabby was ThunderClan's medicine cat, Appletail.

The older medicine cats greeted each other warmly and began to talk amongst themselves. Meanwhile, Swallowpaw fell into step beside Swiftpaw. Swallowpaw was a new apprentice, two moons younger than Swiftpaw. She had narrow, slanted pale green eyes and an air of seriousness about her. She was silent throughout their journey to Moonpool, never so much as glancing at Swiftpaw. At the Moonpool they met up with RiverClan's medicine cat, Streamheart, a slim, pretty silvery blue tabby she-cat. Streamheart had received her medicine cat name a few moons ago, but her mentor only recently passed away.

Swiftpaw greeted Streamheart politely, but she merely nodded in response. "Come on, then. We're wasting moonlight standing around here like prey."

The six cats hastily made their way to the edge of Moonpool, where they took their places, bent their heads, and lapped up a few drop of the icy water. Swiftpaw lay down at the edge of the Moonpool, where he quickly drifted off to sleep…

--

…

_For a few moments Swiftpaw couldn't see a thing. A thick haze snaked around him. But soon his eyes adjusted to the black mist as a tendril of fog wrapped around his throat. Suddenly a flash of ice blue glimmered before him. Then he made out the thin pupils. The hazy, blurry form of a small cat appeared in the fog._

"_Welcome, Swiftpaw," the cast rasped in a cold voice._

"_W…who are you?" Swiftpaw demanded shrilly, his hackles beginning to rise. "Where am I?"_

"_Don't you recognize the Dark Forest?"_

"_The Dark Forest!?" yelped Swiftpaw. "That's…that's where all the evil cats go!"_

"_Bah! StarClan must be filling your head with nonsense again."_

"_Wh…what?" Swiftpaw's ears, which had been flat against his head now stood upright, and he straightened from his crouching position. "StarClan are doing no such thing! They're wise and—"_

"_And what?" sneered the cat, rising to all fours. "StarClan are dead cats simply imagined by the Clans who need someone to follow."_

"…"

_The black cat tipped his head upwards, slightly. "I bet you want to know who I am."_

_Swiftpaw nodded slowly._

"_I am the cat that you should be following, Swiftpaw. ShadowClan…peh. You think you're a full-blooded ShadowClan cat? Think again—you're only half-blooded."_

"_Half-blooded? How would you know?" Swiftpaw demanded._

_The black cats slunk closer, a sinister glint in its eyes. It seemed about to speak, when a hiss filled the air and a blur dart through the mist, instantly parting it. The cat had stars in its pelt and at its paws, clearly one of the many nobler cats among the StarClan ranks. The cat was a large, broad-shoulder tabby with long fur. The tabby glared at the black cat, its lip curled. "Be gone with you, mangy scum!" the tabby roared angrily._

_The black cat hissed, and turning its chilling gaze to Swiftpaw. "This isn't yet finished, Swiftpaw! We'll speak again." And then the cat was gone, disappeared into the shadows._

_Swiftpaw blinked as the tabby turned around, trying to put a name on the cat's face. "I bet you don't recognize me, Swiftpaw. I am Raggedstar, one of the past leaders of ShadowClan. There is a message you must hear. I came to fetch you from the Dark Forest. Come with me."_

_Swiftpaw nodded mutely and followed after Raggedstar. "So…how did you know I was here?" he finally asked, a little tentative._

"_It was just a guess. It's happened once before, but it's not your fault. That good-for-nothing BloodClan cat brought you there—you didn't go willingly."_

"_That…was a BloodClan cat?"_

"_Yes, from the original BloodClan."_

"_Oh."_

_It wasn't long before the dark haze that crept low to the ground of the darkened woods faded into a bright forest of long, arching trees and thick shrubbery. Streams of watery golden sunlight shone through the trees. Raggedstar led Swiftpaw along a long, snaking trail. They seemed to walk for moons before the path before them opened up into a wide clearing filled with long grasses and bracken. A cat sat in the middle of the clearing, on one side of the clear stream that divided the treeless area. The cat was a light tabby with russet tabby markings and white paws._

_The tabby tom strode forward calmly and dipped his head to Raggedstar, then Swiftpaw. Raggedstar returned the greeting and the leaped across the stream, where he promptly sat beside the tabby. Swiftpaw bowed his head respectfully and then sat down opposite of Swiftpaw. "Greetings, Swiftpaw," the tabby meowed. "I am Runningfire."_

"_H-Hello, R-Runningfire."_

"_I have a warning for you, Swiftpaw. ShadowClan is in danger. There is a traitor within your ranks. A cat whose desire for revenge that refuses to subside."_

"_Who is this cat?!"_

_Runningfire exchanged a glance with Raggedstar, then replied, "I'm…I'm sorry, but I can't tell you that. The fact is, not _everything_ can be seen by StarClan."_

"_Then can you at least tell me _why_ you're telling me instead of Shadowwhisper?"_

"_The things that are to come will after you more than they will Shadowwhisper," Raggedstar's great voice explained._

"_Oh. I see," Swiftpaw said, though in truth he did not._

"_Stay vigilant, Swiftpaw, and the answers you seek shall come, in time," Raggedstar continued. "And remember, until the traitor is discovered, trust no one…"_

_--_

Raggedstar's voices faded as a delicate paw prodded at Swiftpaw's shoulder. He stirred, and eventually awakened. He yawned as he sat up and gazed about the Moonpool. Streamheart was examining her claws, which meant she must not have important news; Swallowpaw was speaking excitedly in hushed tones with Flamepatch; and Appletail seemed eager to return to her Clan.

And so the cats set off to return to their Clans. Streamheart was the first to disappear, followed by Flamepatch and Swallowtail. And then, eventually, Appletail said her goodbyes as well and left for her camp.

"So…Swiftpaw…dream of anything interesting?" asked Shadowwhisper when they were alone.

Swiftpaw hesitated, then replied, "No. Nothing much. I was just curious…what did Scourge, the original leader of BloodClan look like?"

Shadowwhisper seemed surprised. "Why would you ask?"

"I'm just wondering."

"Well, now, what I know is just from what the elders tell me, but they say he was a black cat with a small build, a white forepaw, and ice-colored eyes."

"Hmm…"

"What is it?"

"Remember when you told me hat riddle from the story on the way to the Moonpool? I think I figured it out!"

"Oh, did you?" Shadowwhisper asked, amused.

"Yeah! See, Scourge was a black cat with ice-blue eyes, and he was the leader of the original BloodClan. Then, seasons later, a new BloodClan shows up, led by a black she-cat with ice-colored eyes, like Scourge. And she leaves that threat, warning them away from 'the cat of ice.' That could be referring to their eye colors, right? So maybe she was warning them away from future black cats with ice-colored eyes!"

"Hmm…maybe, I suppose," Shadowwhisper meowed. But in truth, she was a little bit amazed with her apprentice's reasoning, and how he pieced together the clues. She'd never thought of that…but of course, there was no way she'd ever tell him that.

Soon the two cats found themselves back at camp. Swiftpaw padded ahead of his mentor to his nest, his mind racing. Maybe this bit of the puzzle he'd just cracked would help him understand the warning he'd received earlier in the evening…

Before he knew it, Swiftpaw had fallen into a deep sleep, curled up tight within his nest.

* * *

**WHEE.**

**SO JAJA HOW WAS IT?!?  
**

**R&R**


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